Wanted
by gc.flash
Summary: Central City is littered with metahumans. Barry Allen is one of those who received powers the night the particle accelerator exploded. Now, with a newfound purpose, Barry must fight to rescue other metahumans from being captured and collected by those who wish to rid the city of metas like him. But will Barry be able to save them without getting caught in the process?
1. Chapter 1: Purpose

**Chapter 1: Purpose**

The day the scanner flashed red was the day Barry's life ended. How was he supposed to know that he was poisoned with this abnormality? It wasn't his fault that he had been chosen to have these powers. If he could simply return his powers to wherever they had come from he would do it in a heartbeat.

The Central City police department had been placed on lockdown until they could find the metahuman hidden within the building. After a few hours had passed, two men in suits joined the men meant to 'guard' the premises, arriving with blood scanners and even more unnervingly, guns.

"Line up in two lines, single file!" one of the men barked at the confused officers.

Barry, upon hearing this order, lined up with the rest of the men, just as weary as the rest of them. One by one, each of the men scanned green and they let out an audible sigh of relief. Joe West, Barry's adoptive father, whispered to Barry, "Don't worry kid, you got nothing to fear. If you had some sort of superpower I'm pretty sure I would know. I do live with you." He gave Barry a pat on the back and added, "Unfortunately. Did you know you left your boxers on the couch _again_."

Barry laughed lightly at Joe's attempt to lighten the mood. "Once. I did that a total of one time."

"Twice now. But man, now you're gonna stink up the living room for days." Joe replied, crinkling his nose.

"Next," the man called. Barry inched towards him holding out his wrist. The needle pricked Barry's wrist, drawing a small drop of blood. The scanner took a minute to evaluate his blood sample. In just a short second, the scanner flashed red. Barry's eyes widened in disbelief. He looked back at Joe, whose blood had drained from his face. There was a moment where everyone froze, slowly processing that Barry Allen, the CSI worker they passed every day, was a metahuman.

The moment ended when the other man shouted, "Seize him!"

"No. Run, Barry run! Get out of here!" Joe shouted, trying to push through the wall of soldiers blocking his path.

Time seemed to move in slow motion for Barry. It wasn't just your same old time slowing down after an awkward situation or something, time _actually_ slowed around him. It took a split second for Barry to process Joe's plea. He ran. Two soldier stood in Barry's way out in the hallway, tasers outstretched. The larger of the two soldiers lunged with the taser, but Barry dodged at almost superhuman speed.

"Woah." Barry exhaled, staring at his hands. The other soldier lunged again but Barry was much quicker, taking the taser out of his hands before he knew what hit him and shock the soldier until he fell to the ground.

"Warning! Meta is breaking out! I repeat meta is breaking out!" the remaining soldier shouted loudly so that the entire building could've heard him.

"Shut up!" Barry hissed, wasting no time, knocking the soldier out with a swift punch to the jaw. It wasn't long before a river of soldiers, led by the two men in suits flooded into the hallway after him. Barry ran, but the men were gaining on him, fast.

 _I have to go faster._ Barry thought. _Faster!_ He sprinted faster than he thought possible, exiting the building in one swift motion. In a flash, he was home. _What the… How'd I get home?_ Barry wondered. He wondered if he was dreaming, glancing around the house nervously. The boxers left on the couch brought him out of his stupor. He couldn't have such a detailed dream. And this seemed so real for something so impossible.

"Barry? You're home early. Where's dad?" Barry spun around to see Iris, his adoptive sister and major crush.

"Oh my god! Barry! You're bleeding!" Iris gasped.

"Huh?" Barry asked, confused. His eyes followed Iris' gaze to his shoulder. Sure enough, a stain of red was already pooling on his shirt.

"Oh… I must've gotten shot while they were chasing me." Now that Iris had mentioned it, Barry felt an explosion of pain from his left shoulder and grimaced darkly.

"Are you alright? What happened? What do you mean? Who's chasing you?" Iris asked, eyes wide in fright for Barry, fearing the worst.

Barry applied pressure to his wound to try to stop the bleeding, "I think I'm in trouble. I don't know how, but I am."

Eyes, still wide with concern, Iris said, "Why don't you start from the beginning?"

Barry ran his other hand through his hair, sighing, "Well, at the precinct today, a couple of men came to find a meta in the building…" Barry began.

"Did they not find him? Is he on the loose?"

"Iris…" Barry trailed off, not knowing how to put this into words, "I-I'm the meta."

Iris stepped back unconsciously, the very reaction Barry had hoped not to receive, fear.

"No, no, Iris! I'm not dangerous I swear!" Barry pleaded. Iris regained her composure and gave him a reassuring smile.

"I know Bar, it's just a lot to take in." She took a deep breath. "You have to get that wound of yours patched up first. I have some bandages in the kitchen. Then you should get out of the city Barry. It's the only way you can be safe with the government searching far and wide for metas like you."

"I know," Barry sighed, "I'll miss you." He stepped forward and Iris wrapped her arms around him for a hug.

"I'll miss you too, Barry Allen." Iris said, eyes watering. Suddenly, alarms sounded, heard throughout the entire town.

"Public city announcement! A young man in his mid-twenties has evaded custody. He has attacked two soldiers and has been pronounced a public threat. He may have a bullet wound from our soldiers If you see him, please turn him into the nearest meta-collection center immediately. A photograph will be released shortly. Until this criminal is found, the city will be placed on lockdown. No one leaves or enters the city." With a beep, the voice signed off.

Slowly, Iris looked up at Barry. "You need to hide, Bar. We can sneak you out of here. O-or we can-"

"Calm down Iris." Barry took a shaky breath. "First, I have to bandage this thing." He said, gesturing to his wound.

"Oh! Yes, of course." She scurried to the kitchen, digging through the drawers until she found a roll of thick cloth. She did her best to bandage his gushing shoulder and tied it off with shaky hands.

"Okay," Barry said, "What now?"

"You still haven't told me what you what your power is, Mr. Superhero," Iris joked, punching him lightly in the shoulder to lighten the mood.

"Super speed." Barry replied.

"What! That's actually pretty cool despite all this." Iris grinned.

"No! It is so not cool! See what it costed me! I'm the most wanted man in Central City _and_ there's a hole in my shoulder!" Barry was practically steaming from his anger.

"Barry. It's not your fault that you're different. In fact, the world could use a little different nowadays." With this, Barry's face lifted. Maybe all hope was not lost. A scream pierced through the room and the two of them rushed to the window to see what had happened.

"Please! Please don't take my daughter!" A woman was crying on her knees while officers pried a little girl, no more than 7 years old from the woman's arms.

"Mommy! Don't let them take me!" The girl thrashed in the steel hold of the officer who cuffed her and handed her to another man in the meta-collection truck.

"Please don't take her. I'm all she has left. She doesn't even have powers! She's not a threat, I swear! Just don't take her from me." The woman begged to the pitiless face of the officer.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. She may not be a threat to society now. But she could become one and we can't take that risk." With that, the officer jumped into the truck and took off for the Meta Correction Facility, leaving the mother sobbing on the street.

Barry tore his eyes away from the window in disgust. How could they take the little girl from her own mother? She wasn't dangerous and neither was he. Could the people be wrong about metahumans? Maybe they weren't all as dangerous as the government made them out to be.

All Barry knew is that families could not keep being teared apart like this. While the little girl had been taken away, he had stood, helplessly and he hated it. What if he could make a difference? Families deserved to stay together, not be torn apart because chance gifted one with powers.

Barry looked up to see Iris staring at him. "What are you thinking in that brilliant mind of yours?"

"I don't want to hide, or run away," Barry said firmly, "I want to use my powers for good. To save metahumans like me from being taken away."

 **Hey guys. Welcome to my very first story :D Read and tell me what you think in the reviews! I might do weekly reviews depending on school. Hope you enjoy this story as much as I enjoyed writing it :)**


	2. Chapter 2: Picking up Speed

**A relatively long chapter. Enjoy!**

 **Chapter 2: Picking up Speed**

Joe West walked into the West household to see his daughter and a bandaged Barry on the couch talking in hushed voices.

"Oh, Barry. Thank the Lord that you're home safely." Joe let out a breath of relief at his son, home safe. "You have to leave. Now. Pack some of your stuff and get in the car."

"Dad wait," Iris said, standing up, "Barry has made a decision already. He's staying here and using his powers to help other metahumans like him."

"No. Absolutely not, it's too reckless, and not to mention, dangerous. Barry, you could get caught, or worse they could kill you. I will _not_ have this family torn apart!" Joe said firmly, with tears in his eyes.

Barry stood up as well. "Joe… Other families, fathers even, are thinking the exact same way as you. How about the metahumans who don't escape? Children, ripped from their parents. _I_ can stop them with my new ability. I can save them."

Joe took a minute to process Barry's words, knowing he was right. "Are you sure about this Bar? Risking your life for others? It may be a valiant move, but I don't know if I can just stand by…" A tear slipped down Joe's cheek.

Barry gave Joe a small smile. "It's not the 'valiant' thing to do, Joe. It's the right thing. This is why I got these powers. I know it."

With a sigh, Joe replied, "Alright Bar. You know I'll support you. I just want to know that you are sure about this."

"I'm sure."

For a couple days, Barry ran on the treadmill for a few hours, getting faster and faster. He had already ran to the highest speed setting and knew he could run so much faster. Surprisingly, Barry's shoulder wound had basically healed overnight. Perhaps his set of powers was even more complex than he thought.

One morning, at dawn, Barry woke up to run. Using Joe's extra-large sweatshirt, Barry slipped the hood over his head. The hood dipped in front of his face so that his face was concealed by the shadows.

He slipped out of the house and started running at a relatively slow pace. After a few minutes, he sped up to roughly the maximum treadmill speed. It wasn't enough. He could go faster. Pumping his arms, he went faster. And faster. The cries of the mother and daughter rang through Barry's head. He had to be faster if he was to save the other metahumans. Yelling, he ran faster along the block, closing his eyes, imagining other people who would need his help. He opened his eyes.

The world was flying past him. Buildings blurred as he ran past. Turning his head briefly, he saw a red streak trailing behind him.

"Woohoo!" Barry exclaimed, basking in the wind in his face, his city flying by. He had run all around the city four times, when he arrived on the porch of his house, at about 7AM. Barry had hoped to slip in and out without anyone noticing, but he walked into the house to see Iris and Joe sitting on the dining table.

"Barry, we've been worried sick! Where have you been?" Iris asked standing in relief and confusion.

"Sorry to worry you guys, I was just out running, testing my new ability. I didn't know you'd be up so early." Barry answered, scratching his head.

"Yeah, I woke up to ask you where my phone was and you weren't there, so I woke dad up," Iris answered.

"Barry, you know it's not safe to be out when your face is plastered on the streets. What if you were seen?" Joe scolded.

"Don't worry, Joe, I was careful, I promise. And plus, I was going so fast that no one could have even seen me if they tried." Barry was giddy just thinking about it.

"How fast _did_ you go?" asked Iris, curious.

"So fast that there was _actually_ lightning trailing behind me and the city blurred around me," he answered, smiling with pride and excitement. Iris and Joe stared at Barry. Iris stared at Barry in amazement, while Joe stared in disbelief. "Hey, I can prove it." Barry said, leaving the room with a flash of red lightning.

"Where did that kid go now?" Joe asked, trying to hide how amazed he was by the fact that there was actually lightning, but frankly, failing. A full four minutes passed and the two were starting to worry a little. Barry arrived as if he materialized from thin air, holding two covered cups of coffee from Jitters.

"I know you haven't had you cup of joe yet, Joe," Barry said, smiling, handing both of them the coffee.

"Wow. You ran all the way to Jitters, got coffee, and ran back in under five minutes?" Iris asked, raising in eyebrow.

"Yep," Barry answered, "Although I kind of took the coffee from the barista's hands, but don't worry, I left extra tip on the counter."

"Kid, you got talent, I'll give you that," Joe said, smiling.

"Not talent, a gift." Barry winked. "Now, I don't know about you, but I am starving."

Joe made some eggs and bacon, setting it on the table. Barry drooled at the sight of the food and practically inhaled his plate within five minutes.

"Is it totally weird that I'm still hungry?" Barry asked, bits of bacon stuck in his teeth.

"Does super speed also give you a super appetite?" Iris asked, laughing, for she had barely half of her plate. Barry laughed along with her.

"No joke, I'm still starving," Barry smiled. Two more plates of eggs and bacon later, Barry leaned back in his chair. "Alright, now I'm full."

"Glad to hear it, Bar," Joe said, after making the extra two servings of breakfast and glad he didn't have to make a third.

Barry got up and put his dishes in the sink, then plopped down on the couch and turned on the TV, flipping through the channels lazily.

Joe stood up and said, "Well, _you_ might get to stay home, but unfortunately, I'm not a wanted man, so I have to go to work. Bye baby girl," He said to Iris, kissing her on the head and waved to Barry saying, "See ya Bar." With that he left, the door shutting behind him.

Barry hadn't heard a word Joe had said, for he was too engrossed in the top Central City headline on the news, **"Red Streak in the Streets: Friend or Foe?"**.

"Hey, Iris can you come here for a second?" Barry called. Iris shut her laptop and left the article she had been writing.

"What's up Bar?" she asked, sauntering over to the living room. She sat next to him and watched the news anchor spill the latest news about this red streak.

"This morning, a red streak has been said to be travelling up and down the streets of Central City. No one knows for sure, but speculation says that the streak is actually a metahuman with super speed, running across the city. But the real question remains to be answered. Is this man or woman a friend or a foe? We have received intel from meta-officers this afternoon telling us that this metahuman is dangerous and should be apprehended. Others believe that this streak could be a harmless meta, a hero, some may even say. More on this story later. Next, the mayor of Central City announces the-" Barry shut off the TV and looks at Iris.

"What should I do?" Barry asked helplessly.

"You have to prove that you aren't dangerous," Iris answered, quite matter of factly, "Thank goodness they haven't put two and two together to figure out that you're the streak."

"A lot of people won't agree with what I'm trying to do, Iris, " Barry sighed.

"That's all the more reason to do it! Barry, look at me." Barry turned to face Iris. "Who cares if no one agrees with you? There are always going to be people who stand against you. But what matters is who believes in you. I believe in you, Barry. So many other people will too once you put yourself out there."

Barry sat there, wordless, for a few seconds, thinking about Iris' words, and took a deep, shaky breath, "Thanks, Iris. I know you're right. It's just, what if I only make things worse? What if they figure out who I am and take it out on you o-or Joe-"

"Barry, you can't think like that. Dad and I will support you, no matter what. Anyways, 'what is life without a little risk?'" Iris said with an encouraging smile.

"Did you seriously just quote Harry Potter?" Barry asked, a smile creeping on his face.

"You bet I did," Iris said, laughing. Another set of alarms rang through the neighborhood.

"Attention Central City residents. The criminal, Barry Allen who we have said to be a threat to the community has been assumed to escape, proven through several eyewitnesses including Cisco Ramon and Dr. Harrison Wells. We will still work towards apprehending this criminal, but for now, the city lockdown has been lifted. Thank you." The voice signed off with a beep.

"That's great Barry!" Iris exclaimed.

"I wonder who those people are," Barry wondered.

"Who cares? Probably just some people who don't support the metahuman system or something?" Iris speculated.

Barry's face turned slightly more serious. "Back to business, I'll need a disguise if I'm to go out to save metas in broad daylight," he said.

"Ooh, a superhero costume?" Iris asked jokingly.

"Don't call it that, it sounds lame. It's a _disguise_ for not a superhero, but a _vigilante_."

"Alright, alright, whatever you want. Dad has a ski mask in the garage that you could use to cover your face?" Iris suggested.

"That sounds good." A thought struck Barry. "Hey, Iris, where are we going to do with the metahumans once we prevent them from being taken?"

"One thing at a time, Barry. We'll figure it out." Iris left to retrieve the ski mask. Barry was looking out the window, still planning ahead when he saw the meta-collection truck driving down his street, knowing only pain would come with the vehicle. Iris walked in with the mask and Barry grabbed the red mask, slipped it over his face, and sped off after the truck, tailing it.

The truck came to a stop about seven blocks away. Barry hid behind a tree, concealing himself from view. An officer exited the truck and rapped his knuckles three times on the door. What looked like a teenager opened the door and the two of them exchanged a few words that Barry could not hear.

The officer pulled out the blood scanner and pricked the teen's wrist. The scanner flashed green and the officer raised his eyebrow in suspicion, pushing passed the kid to force his way into the house. Barry longed to speed in and drag the officer out, but he knew he had to wait until the right moment.

A shout resonated through the neighborhood and the officer dragged what Barry assumed was the father, out of the house. The scanner in the officer's hand was still flashing red. The teenager grabbed on to her father's hands trying to keep the officer from taking him, but her protests went unnoticed by the officer. As an iron fist clenched Barry's heart, he thought _Now._

Barry sped out from behind the tree and punched the officer in the face. The officer stood confused and Barry took the opportunity to pry the father from his grasp and put him down behind him, next to his daughter. The officer stood dumbfounded by the mysterious figure.

"You. Y-you're the red streak?" The officer asked.

Barry lowered his voice so that he wouldn't recognize him (just in case), and said, "Yes. And I'm not letting you take this man from his family."

The officer stood taller. "Oh yeah? And who's gonna stop me?," he scoffed. The man pulled out his gun and shot at him, but his weapon was no match for Barry. Five bullets were shot by the man. Each one seemed to shoot at Barry in slow motion. Mentally chuckling to himself, Barry caught each bullet, and dropped them to the ground in front of the officer.

"You know who's going to stop you? Me. Night, night." Barry knocked out the officer, who crumpled to the ground.

"Hey, what's the hold up, Al?" a voice hollered from the back of the truck. Barry had almost forgotten about the man in the truck. He creeped along the side of the truck waiting for the man to turn the corner. "Al?" the voice shouted again, "Jeez, this guy can't do anything himself, can he?" the man rounded the corner of the truck and _Wham!_ Barry fist made contact with the other man's jaw which practically seemed the power button for most people. The other officer fell to the ground.

Barry quickly cuffed the officers with their own cuffs and spun around to see the man and his daughter with multiple emotions in their eyes. Gratitude and relief, but also fear and confusion. "Wh-who are you? And how can we ever repay you?"

"There's no need to repay me," Barry answered. "They'll be back eventually. For now, lay low, find a new house, and maybe even change your name because they will come after you."

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" The father exclaimed with glee and gratitude, hugging his daughter and kissing her on the head. The two hurried back inside the house to gather their stuff. Satisfied with what he had done, Barry ran home to Iris.

"So where'd you run off to this time? Save any metas?" Iris asked, elbows on her knees.

"I saved a father from being taken from his daughter. And it felt really good," Barry said, smiling from ear to ear.

Iris mirrored his smile. "That's great, Barry. I'm so proud of you." Suddenly, the phone rang. Barry went to pick it up hesitantly.

"Hello?" Barry said, "Who is this?"

"Uh. Hi, is this Barry Allen?" the voice asked.

"Yeah.. And this is?"

"Oh, sorry. My name is Cisco Ramon and I'm calling from Star Labs. We've seen what you've done, so we reached out to you." _How did this person know who I am?_ Barry wondered.

"You're the one who told them I had escaped? You and uh.. Dr. Wells? Why?"

"Well we figured we couldn't have people putting together the fact that you are the red streak. By the way, I've been thinking of some super cool names for you. The blur, the streak, the whoosh, the flash…"

Barry coughed. "Um ok… But why are you calling?"

"Oh, did I not mention that? Barry Allen, me and my team want you to come to Star Labs and work _with_ us to free these metahumans."

 **Hey! Hope you guys liked that. I had a little extra time on this Saturday morning so I got this chapter done early :D. Okay so I just read Prejudice by Redq and I will admit the summary does sound similar, but I promise this story will take a whole different direction.**

 **Also, to people who asked when other characters are going to enter, next chapter, a lot of Star Labs characters will be introduced. This version of Dr. Wells will be the Harry, season 2 version cuz he's my favorite haha. Thanks for all the support. Expect an update roughly next week(?) Read and review!**

 **By the way, for any Supergirl fans out there, I'm publishing a story pretty soon about Kara and Mon-El meeting on Daxam ;)**


	3. Chapter 3: Identity

**Chapter 3: Identity**

"What?" Barry couldn't believe what he was hearing. Total strangers already believed in his cause. Iris was right.

"Yup. You can stop by later today and we can talk. Sound good?" Cisco asked.

"Okay got it, see you then." Barry hung up the phone, "Iris. Star Labs just called. They heard what I did and they want to work with me!" He could barely contain his excitement.

"That's great Bar!" Iris clapped happily, "When do you meet with them?"

"Later today," Barry answered, still smiling from ear to ear, "Joe gets back soon, maybe when he gets back, we can go?"

"Sounds good." A thought hit Iris, "Wait, Barry, how did this 'Star Labs' know who you were and what your phone number was?"

Barry thought about this. "Hmm. I don't know. We can probably ask when we meet them in person. I assume their intentions mean well though. I mean, they were the people who told the government I had escaped."

"Really? What is Star Labs anyways?" Iris asked, soon realizing her mistake when Barry's face lit up.

"You've never heard of Star Labs? Star Labs designed the particle accelerator. It was meant to be the greatest breakthrough in the science world, until, you know, it blew up. It's fascinating really. The accelerator used electromagnetic fields to propel the already charged particles to nearly the speed of light, then the machine contains them in beams. Then those beams can be used for…" Iris tried to listen as Barry waved his hands to animate his words, she really did. But she ended up nodding politely until he was finished.

"They sound really great Barry. I'm genuinely glad you get to work with people who as nerdy and brilliant as you." Barry laughed.

"Nerdy?"

"Uh, yeah? Did you hear yourself just now? Going on and on about magnetic fields and particle accelerators." Iris rolled her eyes at him.

"Alright, alright point taken, I'm nerdy and brilliant," Barry admitted, "I'm actually really tired. You know, running practically all night? I'm going to go get some rest. Wake me up when Joe gets back?"

"Yeah, yeah of course. Get some rest. I'll be working on this article I've been writing," Iris replied, "See ya."

As soon as Barry had gone upstairs to take a nap, Iris brewed herself a cup of tea and sat down at the dining table. She opened her laptop and clicked on her latest article. The headline was, "The Streak: An Ally to the People".

Of course, she was biased towards Barry. He was her best friend after all. The purpose of the article wasn't to inform, but to convince. In her article, she had reviewed the streak's supposed motives and purpose, hoping to prove to her audience that this man was a hero.

A few hours later, at nearly 7PM, Joe West returned from the station, putting his jacket on the hook. "Hey, baby girl. What's up?"

"Oh, dad, you're back! I'll go wake Barry, we're going to Star Labs," Iris said, slipping her coat on.

"Wait, what?" Joe asked, confused.

"Oh, well, when you were gone, Barry saved his first meta from being taken, a father. And a person from Star Labs called and asked if they could work with Barry," Iris explained.

"What if it's a trap? We can't just have Barry waltzing out into public again." Of course, as a father figure, Joe was paranoid for Barry.

"It's not. Did you hear the city-wide announcement? Those people practically saved Barry's life." Little did they know that wouldn't be the last time either.

"What?" Joe raised his eyebrows.

"You heard those people who said they saw Barry escape? That was them," She elaborated.

"Oh… Then, I guess we do owe them. How did they know Barry was this streak anyways?" Joe wondered aloud.

"Guess we'll find out soon enough." Barry walked down the stairs, yawning.

"You guys are awfully loud," Barry complained, "Anyways, you guys ready to go?" Iris almost laughed at the thought of Barry walking into Star Labs looking as he did now. His hair was all over the place, his t-shirt was wrinkled, and to top it off, he was wearing his bunny slippers.

"Uh, why don't you get cleaned up first?" Iris suggested.

Barry looked at himself and chuckled lightly, "Wow, I look like a mess, don't I?"

"You look a little disheveled, yeah." Iris replied, with a smile of her own.

"Why don't you guys go ahead? I'll run there," Barry suggested.

"Nah, Bar, we can wait for you," Joe insisted.

"I bet," Barry challenged, "That I can still get there before both of you."

"Oh, you are on, kid." The two of them rushed out the door to get the Star Labs.

Barry quickly threw on a sweatshirt and a pair of jeans, brushed his hair, and pulled a pair of sneakers on his feet. Then, he sped out of the house, running to Star Labs, having to use a GPS on his phone. He arrived at the front door, just as Joe and Iris were pulling up to the parking lot.

"No fair," Joe complained, "You don't have to deal with traffic on the way."

"Well I left a full ten minutes after you did, so I think I gave you a fair head start," Barry argued.

"Hey! Can we quit bickering and go inside now?" Iris asked, clearly exasperated by the immaturity of the two.

"Oh, yeah, right," Barry responded, sheepish. He pushed open the double doors and stood marveling at the devices all around the room. A voice pulled him out of his trance.

"Mr. Allen. Nice to meet you. My name is Dr. Harrison Wells, but you can call me Harry if you wish. I've heard so much about you," the man greeted.

"Nice to meet you too. This is my adoptive dad, Joe, and best friend, Iris."

"Pleasure to meet both of you as well. Now, why don't you all follow me. We have much to discuss." Dr. Wells led the three of them to the elevator which brought them to the 8th floor where they walked into the main room.

The man Barry assumed to be Cisco was there waiting along with another woman in a lab coat. "Barry! It's great to finally meet you! As you know, I'm Cisco, and this is my friend and colleague, Caitlin." Barry loved how although he's never met Cisco, he was already acting as if they were best friends.

"It's great to meet you guys too. Anyways, you said you all wanted to work with me?" Barry asked.

"Oh! Yes! We know what you're trying to do. We've seen it. And we want to help you," Cisco explained.

"But how do you know who I am and what I did?" To answer his question, Cisco typed on his computer, pulling up several videos of Barry on the monitor screens ahead of them.

"I hacked into the city surveillance cameras the other day, curious about that news report about that streak guy. So, I did a little digging and found out it was a man named Barry Allen." To further explain himself, Cisco paused the video of Barry running through the streets, enlarged it, highered the resolution, brightened the screen and there was a relatively clear picture of Barry Allen. "Then of course, I used facial recognition to figure out it was you. Saw the footage of what you did for that father and connected the dots." Cisco leaned back in his office chair, clearly impressed with himself.

"Wow." Barry exhaled, "That's impressive."

"What can I say? Computers are kind of my bread and butter," Cisco replied with a proud smile.

"It's true. He's kind of a genius. Like Harry of course," Caitlin agreed.

Cisco flushed, "Don't sell yourself short, Cait." He pointed to her, "This girl isn't just any doctor. I swear, this girl can heal anything you throw at her."

"Thanks, Cisco," Caitlin blushed and smiled warmly.

"Anyways," Cisco continued, his face turning more serious, "I've hacked into the government system and now have access to the communication system the meta-collection officers use. Whenever it's in use, this device here, will beep." Cisco held up a small, metallic stone-like object.

"That's amazing, Cisco." He took the device and inspected it.

"Well, Harry here helped create the device," Cisco admitted. "Now, for the fun part. I'm in the middle of designing a supercool costume for you and thinking of your superhero name."

Barry groaned. "It's not a costume, it's a _disguise_ for a _vigilante_ , not a superhero."

"Whatever you want to call it, man. I'm designing a suit and thinking of a name. Okay, I told you on the phone, but here's the names I was thinking of: the blur, the streak, the whoosh, and the flash," Cisco said proudly.

Barry thought about it. The whoosh sounded a little dumb (no offense to Cisco) and the blur was much too mysterious for him. The streak was what people were already calling him, so that was a valid option. But the flash really had a nice ring to it…

"What do you guys think of the flash?" Barry said finally.

"I like it," Iris agreed. Everyone in the room nodded in agreement.

"Alright then. It's settled," Cisco announced, "Team Flash! Off to rescue the metahumans!" Everyone in the room cheered, laughing. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot, Barry, I have another surprise. Follow me."

"More surprises?" Barry asked in disbelief. Cisco led Barry to a room with a treadmill. "What's this?"

"Oh, this baby isn't just any old treadmill," Cisco said, resting a hand on the handle of the treadmill, "This thing will match any speed you run to, set to the maximum of… wait for it… the speed of light!"

"Woah!" Barry stroked the sleek design of the machine. He spotted the opposite wall, lined with cushions. He raised his eyebrow at Cisco questioningly.

"You know, in case you trip," Cisco explained.

"This is amazing, Cisco. I feel like I've been saying that this whole time."

"Well, I am kind of amazing," Cisco joked. The pair laughed as if they've been friends for years.

After a few hours of chatting and discussing, Joe finally said reluctantly, "We should probably be heading home now. It's getting kind of late."

"Oh my, it's nearly midnight. I hadn't realized how late it was," Harry said.

After saying goodbye, Barry got in the car with Iris and Joe, too tired to run home.

"Everyone here seems so nice," Iris remarked, "They seem genuinely passionate in your cause." Barry smiled at this.

"It's really nice to have so many people believe in me so strongly," he replied.

"We've all got your back, Bar."

Two days later, Barry came back to Star Labs by himself. Both Iris and Joe had work to attend to. Anyways, he was especially excited to try out Cisco's treadmill. Cisco, of course, happily obliged.

Barry stepped onto the treadmill. Cisco, Caitlin, and Dr. Wells stood on the other side of the glass window, Cisco checking on Barry's speed and Caitlin monitoring Barry's vitals. Cisco, gave Barry the 'okay' to start running. So he ran. Cisco couldn't even see his friend anymore, only a blur of lightning, constantly moving. Amazed, Cisco looked down at his monitor. Barry was so close to reaching Mach 1, the speed of sound.

"Dayumm," Cisco whispered to himself. The monitor showed Barry starting to slow down. "Don't stop, Barry! Just a little faster!" He called, "How are his vitals, Cait?"

"Absolutely perfect," She replied in disbelief.

"Impossible," Dr. Wells breathed.

Barry definitely heard him. He sped up, pumping his arms and legs faster than ever. Ten more miles per hour until Mach 1. Nine miles. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. He did it!

"Barry! You've reached the speed of sound!" Cisco exclaimed excitedly.

"Seriously?!" Barry called back. The small distraction was enough for Barry to lose his intense concentration. He tripped over his feet and was propelled backwards, into the cushion.

"Ooh." Cisco winced, rushing into the speed room, "You alright man?"

"Could you… ouch… add thicker cushion to your to do list." Cisco laughed.

"Oh my goodness, Barry!" Caitlin exclaimed, checking Barry's heartrate. It seemed normal, although a little quick. She pulled up Barry's shirt. "There will be a couple of bruises for a while, but nothing permanent."

"Thanks, Caitlin." Barry stood up, wincing from his sore muscles and bruised back.

"Dude, I've got something that will cheer you up. Follow me," Cisco said, beckoning with his finger.

"Do you ever _not_ have a surprise?" Barry followed Cisco out of the room and into the main room. He pressed a button on the wall and a panel lifted revealing a mannequin. The mannequin wore a skin tight, dark red suit and mask. A lightning bolt emblem sat right on its chest proudly and Barry stared in awe.

"Cisco… is that…" Barry couldn't even get his words out.

"Yup. It's much more efficient for running since its tighter and there are communication comms embedded in the earpiece. Oh, and the emblem sends your vitals straight to Caitlin's computer." Cisco proudly presented the suit.

Barry opened his mouth to thank Cisco, but the small device started beeping. They looked at each other and Cisco hurried to his computer. "Meta-collection truck headed towards Clark Boulevard. Hurry!"

Barry put on the suit at super speed and sped off to follow the truck. He saw it immediately. Like the times before, the officer hopped out of the truck and knocked on the door of the house. A woman opened the door, a child by her side. The officer pulled out the blood scanner and scanned both of them. The child scanned red. The woman panicked and slapped the officer, which only infuriated him.

The officer moved to throw a hit at the lady, but Barry caught his fist. "Well, that's rude," He remarked, elbowing the officer in the back of the head. Learning from his previous experience, Barry ran to the back of the truck and knocked the other officer out quickly as well.

He returned to the mother and child. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, thank you. Wh-who are you?" Asked the mother, breathless.

"I'm the Flash."

 **Hey guys, hope you liked this chapter :) The Star Labs team is starting to come together! I'm trying to figure out how to include Julian. Any suggestions? Anyways, thanks for reading and, as always, review! These reviews are honestly my motivation to keep writing ;)**

 **For any Supergirl fans, if you haven't already, go check my other story, "Forbidden Love". See you guys next time!**


	4. Chapter 4: Bounties

**Chapter 4: Bounties**

For the next week or two, Barry had gotten into a sort of habit. Get up. Go to Star Labs. Save a couple of metahumans from being taken. Run on the treadmill to try and get faster. Either go home and spend some time with Joe and Iris or hang around with Cisco (without leaving the house/lab). Sleep. Repeat.

Each time Barry rescued a meta, he felt a sense of pride and satisfaction, but he couldn't just sneak all the metas out of the city. It wouldn't stop the overall meta-collection system. And it wouldn't save all the metas they've already taken to the meta collection center (MCC) where God knows what's happening to them. He had to fight them. It was especially hard with the new price on his head. Signs had been posted all over town a few days ago offering a reward for the Flash but he had to be alive.

And he couldn't just _erase_ Barry Allen from existence just because the rest of the world believed he was gone. Of course, he could move out of the city, but did he want to? This was his home after all. Thoughts swirled through Barry's head, but one thing was obvious. What he needed was a plan. And who better to help than team Flash?

The next day, Barry barged into Star Labs and announced his thoughts to everyone. "We need a way to fight back instead of simply sneaking all of the metas out. We can't just keep doing this. We have to come up with a different strategy."

Everyone in the room nodded in agreement and Dr. Wells spoke up, "I agree, Barry. What do you propose?"

"I- uh- We could…" Cisco clapped his hands suddenly.

"I have an idea! Oh, unless you have an idea Barry?"

"No, no, go ahead."

"Alright, so we already _have_ an army. They just don't know it yet." Cisco put on the biggest grin Barry's ever seen. "Oh, come on. Do you guys not get it? We can _use_ the metas we rescue to fight back!" Everyone on the team began to understand.

"That could actually work," said Dr. Wells, deep in thought, "We only need a way to know which metas have already broken out."

"And a way to contact metas when it's time," Barry added.

"Alright! Now we're getting somewhere! Dr. Wells, help me with the breakout identifier thing. Don't you worry, Barry, very soon, you will have a full-scale revolution on your hands."

"That's the idea," Barry said, grinning at the prospect, "Alright, what should I say to metas I save before then?"

"Just tell them to wait for your call or something trippy like that," Cisco replied. Just as he said that, the meta collection truck detector device lit up. Not ten seconds passed before Barry was out the door.

He ran out of Star Labs and to the corner of Hazelnut Street and Randolph Court. He spotted the familiar truck outside of a small house and hid behind large tree in the yard.

He heard the knock on the door and the hinges of the door opening. Then he heard a familiar voice from the house. He peered over the tree to see his old girlfriend, Linda Park. _Linda's a meta too?_ Barry thought.

"What do you want?" Linda asked, her voice shaking slightly. The man grabbed her arm to scan her wrist, but suddenly, Barry was there as he threw the collector across the lawn. "Who are you?" Linda asked incredulously.

Barry thought for a quick moment about telling Linda her identity, but thought against it, believing it would only endanger her further.

Before Barry could reply, Linda beat him to it, "Wait, I've heard of you haven't I? The Red Streak? Saving metas left and right?"

"The Flash actually," Barry replied, his vocal chords vibrating to hide his identity.

"So the streak has a name? Now what? Let me guess, I have to leave the city and chance my name?"

"That's right. Look, I'm sorry. It's the safest option for the moment."

She sighed. "I know. I just don't want to leave Central City."

"It's not permanent. You'll know when it's safe to come back. Keep an eye on the news" Barry didn't know how to ask whether or not Linda had broken out yet, but he had to find out. "Linda… The night the particle accelerator exploded, did you…"

"Get any super cool superpowers? Nope. Guess I'm the placebo in the bunch. Hey… I didn't tell you my name yet… Do I know you?" Linda stepped closer and squinted at Barry.

"Uh, no. Public records. Stay safe, Linda. I gotta run." With that Barry sped off without another word. Little did Barry know that Linda had not broken out yet but she to very soon.

"The reward for the man calling himself "The Flash" has been increased drastically, inspiring action in bounty hunters around central city. More news on Central City's most wanted later tonight."

Barry switched off the TV in the cortex with a sigh. "It's hard enough dealing with collectors on my tail, now I have to fight off bounty hunters?"

"Come on, man, you're the fastest man alive. You can outrun anyone they throw at you," Cisco said with a proud smirk.

"He's right Bar, a few lowlife guys obsessed with money should be the last thing on your mind right now," Iris added.

The device on the desk started going off and Barry looked up with a confused expression considering he had rescued Linda only an hour ago. "There are a lot more meta alerts lately. Think that's got anything to do with me?"

"Possibly. Perhaps they believe since they have a potential uprising with the streak around town, the search for metas has become more urgent," Dr. Wells said insightfully.

"Hey, that only means we have more metas fast and the rebellions gonna come a lot sooner. No big deal," Cisco reassured him.

Barry nodded and flashed out of the room and into dark, very poorly lit neighborhood. He squinted into the darkness, searching for the truck and spotting it in front of a small house at the end of the road. He made out a figure approaching the door and decided to take out the collector before he even knocked.

He ran over to the house, but before he knew what was going on, the figure swung around with a large weapon and fired at Barry. Instead of bullets as Barry was expecting, A line of pure ice was fired at Barry unexpectedly.

He fell to the ground and started shivering violently. The figure approached and now Barry could see that the man was not wearing the usual white coated collection uniform, but a large winter parka.

"Flash. How nice to finally meet you. And shivering at my feet, no less." The man smirked.

Back at Star Labs, Caitlin had apparently picked up on Barry's failing vitals, because Cisco was now yelling into Barry's earpiece, "Barry! Start vibrating, it will warm you up faster!" Barry obeyed and vibrated, immediately beginning to feel himself shivering less.

"Nuh uh uh, Red," the bounty hunter said. He fired ice at Barry's legs and Barry cried out at the numbness and loss of feeling in his legs.

"Now that you're not running anywhere anytime soon, let's talk. Now the MCC has offered quite a bit of money for your head on a silver platter. And from what I've heard, you've stirred up quite a bit of trouble on the streets. So perhaps I'd be doing a public service to turn you in. Not to mention how much richer I'd be, don't you agree?

Barry struggled to answer. "Th-the MCC is wro-wrong. Metas don't… deserve it-t-t." Barry's teeth had begun to chatter uncontrollably.

"I see. Well unluckily for you, I could care less about what happens to the metahumans. What have they done to earn my respect besides kill my sister!" Snart shouted. "She was so young, Lisa. And it was all because a stinking meta lost control and killed her. Stuck a fricking ice shard in her chest.

"I'm s-sorry," Barry stuttered. And he was. But he also had to keep the man talking longer to save himself even though he was nowhere close to escaping , "But, n-not all of us are l-l-like that-t.

He snorted, "Yeah, right, Red. I don't see any other goody goody metas running up and down the streets like you do every day."

"You d-don't have t-t-to do this," Barry insisted.

"Sorry, Red. But I do. Only way to get filth like you off the streets. Night, Flash," he said, raising his cold gun at Barry's heart.

Barry pulled his eyes closed tightly as he heard Caitlin screaming his name in his ear. He prepared himself for the cold about to hit him in his chest.

Behind his eyes, he saw a bright flash of light wondering if this was death welcoming him with open arms. A moment later he realized he was still lying on the ground, shivering.

He opened his eyes in surprised to see Linda hovering over him in concern. He mildly registered his mask being pulled off and Linda whispering, "Oh, Barry. What have you gotten yourself into…" Then he faded into darkness, feeling cold and alone.

 **DON'T HATE ME PLEASE.**

 **I know you thought this is just another sad abandoned fic, and I honestly thought it would be. But I continued this story for the few readers I have because I know what it's like to be waiting endlessly for a chapter. I'll also try to make the chapters longer but I just wanted to get this chapter out. Don't expect daily or weekly updates but I WONT abandon this story completely.**

 **Please review to make sure people are actually reading this story, especially with school starting soon (ugh).**

 **For those who read my other story about Kara and Mon-El, I will update soon, but I don't know where I'm going with it, only how I'll end it. But don't worry, I'll figure it out.**

 **Until next time loves…**


End file.
